Dame Penny Mordaunt revealed she is ready to make a comeback as a Tory MP after passing the candidate selection process. There had been speculation that the former defence secretary had been blocked from standing by Kemi Badenoch.

But speaking to the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Dame Penny said: “I have passed my parliamentary assessment board. I’m waiting to see what seats I can go for, but I have a full pass from the candidates committee.”

She added: “I would love to be back on the squad. If I’m not selected, I’ll be in the stands cheering on the team and volunteering to chop the oranges at half-time.”

Dame Penny, who stole the show at the King’s Coronation with her sword-wielding role, insisted she now backs leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and watering down net zero targets.

She said: “I’m very happy with the party position as it is on all those issues. And I think Kemi is right.

“I’ve always toed the party line, I haven’t always had my first choice as leader but I have followed the party line.

“And I think Kemi is right to require her potential MPs to say they will deliver the manifesto they stand on.”

Dame Penny was one of many high-profile Conservatives to be ousted at the last general election.

The former Tory leadership hopeful narrowly lost her Portsmouth North seat, which she had represented for 14 years, to Labour by around 800 votes.

She will still need to be picked by a local Tory association as its candidate to stand at the next general election, due by 2029.

Dame Penny won praise for her role carrying a ceremonial sword when Charles was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 2023.